Japanese symbol for “sketching”
写生
しゃせい
Romaji: shasei
sketching; drawing from nature; portrayal; description
In Japanese, sketching is 写生, read しゃせい (shasei).
Before using these characters for a tattoo, check them with a native speaker. Dictionary words often have several meanings, and the right choice depends on context.
Meanings
- n, vs, vt sketching; drawing from nature; portrayal; description
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “sketching”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| スケッチ | スケッチ suketchi | sketch; sketching |
| 点描 | てんびょう tenbyou | sketching |
| 図取り | ずどり zudori | sketching; drawing a plan; sketch |
| お絵かき | おえかき oekaki | doodling; sketching |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 写真 | しゃしん shashin | photograph; photo; picture |
| 描写 | びょうしゃ byousha | depiction; description; portrayal |
| 写る | うつる utsuru | to be photographed; to be projected |
| 被写体 | ひしゃたい hishatai | (photographic) subject |
| 実写 | じっしゃ jissha | live action (as opposed to animation) |
| 写す | うつす utsusu | to copy; to duplicate; to reproduce |
| 生活 | せいかつ seikatsu | life; living |
| 先生 | せんせい sensei | teacher; instructor; master |
Data: JMdict (CC BY-SA 4.0); KANJIDIC2 (CC BY-SA 4.0); KanjiVG (CC BY-SA 3.0); wordfreq (CC BY-SA 4.0 (data)). Retrieved 2026-10-22.